Space Hulk: Deathwing – Arsenal Trailer

If you ran a Google News search for the word ‘arsenal’ over the weekend, chances are you’d have seen a lot of stories about a soccer manager’s 20th anniversary, the worst Premier League goal ever scored or maybe even a bizarre cow-related accident. What you might have missed in that case, is the brand spanking new trailer for Space Hulk: Deathwing, which is titled ‘Arsenal’. In it, we get a good look at some of the tools of the trade that Dark Angel Space Marine Terminators, affectionately referred to as ‘the Deathwing’, use to smite the enemies of their holy Emperor.

Set in the nightmarish future that is the Warhammer 40,000 universe, Space Hulk: Deathwing is a ‘tactical first person shooter’ where you play as one of these mighty Space Marine Terminators as they do battle against a horde of alien monstrosities known as Genestealers. Imagine Doom crossed with Aliens and you’ve got the right idea. Among the weapons at your disposal are classic Warhammer 40k heavy machine gun types such as the Storm Bolter and Assault Cannon (if you like bullets, the latter will quickly become your new best friend) and even a Plasma Cannon, for when you like your projectiles to make a big splash, killing multiple enemies in a single shot. For those of us who like to get up close and personal with the enemy, the Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield combo is a fun way to dish out copious amounts of blunt trauma, while the Heavy Flamer can be used to help you purge the alien menace with righteous and purifying fire.

Warhammer 40,000 fan reaction to what we have seen from Space Hulk: Deathwing so far has been largely positive. Many hardcore fans have been quite critical of Dawn of War 3‘s gameplay footage as they feel it represents the Warhammer 40,000 universe inaccurately as certain units, particularly, the Terminators, seem to be a bit too agile. Typically, Terminators’ hand-to-hand combat style is that of slow buggers who use their amazing Tactical Armour to shrug off enemy attacks and then crush their opponents with chunky melee weapons such as the Power Fist. Some have remarked that the Terminators in Space Hulk: Deathwing seem a little bit on the quick side. While it does somewhat take away from the slow, methodical tension of Space Hulk, this was probably a deliberate move on behalf of the game developers in order to prevent the gameplay experience from feeling overly laborious.

Originally a 1989 table top board game played with dice and miniatures that you had to build and paint yourself, Space Hulk has seen many incarnations down through the years. The first video game adaptation was released in 1993 for PC and there have been several different takes on the property since.

Space Hulk: Deathwing is scheduled for release on PC, Xbox One and Playstation 4 this November.

Sean is Geek Ireland's resident dinosaur enthusiast, having been fascinated by prehistory since a time before he could read, speak or stand in an upright position (he still struggles to do at least one of these things on a daily basis).
Known as one of the biggest dinosaur fans Ireland has ever produced, Sean has delivered talks on his favourite subject at many venues and events including the Irish Film Institute, the UCD Science Expression Festival, Tayto Park, Dublin Comic Con and even London's Comedy Store.